Synopsis

Colors, Rubin tells us, affect everyone through sound, smell, taste, and a vast array of emotions and atmospheres. She explains that although she has been blind since birth, she has experienced color all her life.

In her memoir Do You Dream in Color?, Laurie Rubin looks back on her life as an international opera singer who happens to be blind. From her loneliness and isolation as a middle school student to her experiences skiing, Rubin offers her young readers a life-story rich in detail and inspiration drawn from everyday challenges. Beginning with her childhood in California, Rubin tells the story of her life and the amazing experiences that led her to a career as an internationally celebrated mezzo-soprano.

Rubin describes her past as a "journey towards identity," one she hopes will resonate with young people struggling with two fundamental questions: "Who am I?" and "Where do I fit in?" Although most of us aren't blind, Rubin believes that many of us have traits that make us something other than "normal." These differences, like blindness, may seem like barriers, but for the strong and the persistent, dreams can overcome barriers, no matter how large they may seem. This is what makes her story so unique yet universal and so important for young readers.

Laurie Rubin

About Laurie Rubin

Blind since birth, mezzo-soprano LAURIE RUBIN recently received high praise from New York Times chief classical music critic Anthony Tommasini, who wrote she possesses "compelling artistry," "communicative power," and that her voice displays "earthy, rich and poignant qualities." Recent career highlights include her United Kingdom solo recital debut performance at Wigmore Hall in London as well as her solo recital debut at Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall. Ms. Rubin has performed concerts of new music with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, and has performed numerous roles, including the lead role of Karen in The Rat Land by Gordon Beeferman with New York City Opera, Penelope in Monteverdi's The Return of Ulysses, and the title role in Rossini's "La Cenerentola." She has recorded a CD of art songs with renowned collaborative pianists Graham Johnson and David Wilkinson on the Opera Omnia label. She is co-founder and associate artistic director of Ohana Arts, a performing arts school and festival in Hawaii. She also designs her own line of handmade jewelry, LRLook.

Praise

Praise

"Laurie Rubin shows that we need not be defined by what others may see as our limitations. With her remarkable approach to life and her extraordinary musical achievements, she is an inspiring example to all who are finding their way."—Katherine Damkohler, Executive Director, Education Through Music

"I’ve never met Laurie Rubin, but her voice and spirit leap off the page of her riveting memoir. Despite all the obstacles and prejudice Rubin faced growing up blind, reading Do You Dream in Color? left me feeling that she’s had a charmed life. . .Art, love, family, and connectedness are the high notes Rubin hits again and again in this unusually inspiring life story.”—Elizabeth Benedict, author of Almost and The Practice of Deceit

"Do You Dream in Color? shows the same clarity, honesty, and devotion that Laurie has always had with her art. A wonderful book."—Frederica von Stade, mezzo-soprano

“Her book is riveting and readers will find themselves cheering for her victories and feeling her pain when peers and instructors dismiss her or treat her as if she is invisible or 'less-than' her sighted contemporaries.” —Jewish Book Council